It was a sunny morning in the countryside, and Monkey Lyly was excited to help out with something new—drying rice! With a tiny hat on her head and a big smile on her face, she followed Mom out to the yard where bags of freshly harvested rice waited to be spread out under the sun.
At first, it looked easy. Mom showed Lyly how to gently spread the rice across the bamboo mat with a wooden rake. Lyly copied her movements, determined to be helpful. But things didn’t go as planned. The moment Mom turned her back, a strong breeze swept through, blowing the rice in all directions. Lyly squealed, “Mom… hurry… hurry!” as she scrambled to scoop up the flying grains.
Just as they got things under control, a group of curious chickens wandered over, pecking at the rice and kicking it around like a playground. Lyly ran in circles, waving her arms, trying to shoo them away. “No! This isn’t for you!” she cried, but the chickens didn’t listen. Mom rushed over, laughing while helping Lyly protect the drying grains.
Then came the sun—hot and unforgiving. After just a few minutes of work, Lyly was panting, fanning herself with her little hands. She looked up at Mom with wide eyes, wondering how anyone did this every day. But Mom smiled, gave her a cool drink, and reminded her that this was how families prepared food for the year ahead.
Despite the challenges, Lyly didn’t give up. With Mom’s help, she learned to be more careful and patient. By the end of the day, the rice was finally dry and neatly gathered. Though tired, Lyly felt proud. She had helped—even if it had been a little chaotic.
Drying rice turned out to be harder than she thought, but Lyly’s first try was full of learning, laughter, and love.
